So you want to video the school nativity...

Filming a key event at school takes time and effort. There are issues around child safety and what you can and cannot do – yet teachers are finding that the camcorder is becoming much more than just a recording tool

Multi-tasking: school videos can be used to raise funds, preserve memories, support revision, inform parents. Photograph: photolibrary.com
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The religious festivals of Diwali, Eid and Christmas all take place within months of each other, leaving the winter term jam-packed with school performances, assemblies and other events that all make fine candidates for capture by camera.

At Halley school in Stepney, London, for instance, they use film to show parents who can't attend what their children have been up to and display the videos on the way in to the school. "We've got a big screen in the entrance hall and we have an old computer dedicated to it that is low spec but fine for doing a display," says ICT co-ordinator Hilary Norton.

Some schools prepare films that can be taken home. One anonymous primary head says that at least one occasion she has ensured every child in the school has appeared in the Christmas show and therefore on the subsequent DVD – which she sold to parents at five pounds a time to swell school funds.

Sukina Lally, who teaches at The Vale school, is considering posting her school's video on a secure website, such as a learning platform, for parents or other professionals to see. For pupils she believes it is a useful aid over time as students "know they have lots ofrecordings of themselves they can watch to see their own progression". Staff find that by grabbing short video clips of pupils during activities they can "watch the video and see the student reactions as a way of assessing their responses".

But video does not just provide a visual keepsake for parents. In Haringey, local special schools have tried out it as a tool for assessment but then discovered it has other uses. Jo Allen, from Blanche Nevile, a school for the deaf in Muswell Hill, is using a Flip video camera - a simple, one-button device - to record what students were doing in lessons and play back at the end, or as revision tool at the start of the next lesson.

By videoing the lesson to reflect on what was being learnt, rather than just a way of recording an event, she found the camera became "a teaching rather than a recording tool".

Nevile had not used video in class before but she found the camera "very straightforward" to use, particular in helping students prepare for exams in British Sign Language, part of the school's languages offer.

Getting started

Creating your own film depends on "the type of kit you have, what sort of film you are making and how you intend to publish it", says John Woods, an ICT advisory teacher in Tower Hamlets. "Creating a professional-quality film can mean taking an hour of video for each minute of the final film, time that busy school staff don't have."

One difficulty is the time needed for editing, according to Hilary Norton. "I would always recommend people be as careful as possible with what and how they are shooting, so it needs as little editing as possible." She suggests using two cameras from different angles - one could record the whole stage and the other could pick out details of the action – the film can then be edited together.

When you first start, Jo Allen advises experimenting with the camera first before using it in class. "You've got to play first to realise what it can do. Then put it into practice."

Once you have got the knack of the camera, there are other simple tips for making a good video. Get to know the show, so that you zoom in on the action happening in the correct part of the stage, although a policy of 'set it up and leave it' can also work, giving the video audience a similar experience to those who have seen things live.

Tips on making that perfect picture

John Woods from Tower Hamlets offers some more pointers:• Create a storyboard before you start so that the film is well planned.It will save time in shooting and editing• Rehearse each shot to reduce the number of takes• Use a variety of shots• Use a tripod where possible to keep the camera steady• Sound makes a difference• Headphones improve sound quality because you hear what the audience will hear• An external microphone will give better quality sound than the onebuilt in to the camera• Allow the soundtrack to continue across the edited frames, and useoff-screen sounds for effect• Don't use too much camera movement, otherwise the viewer does notknow what to concentrate on• Finally, don't forget to add the credits of both the stage productionand the film crew• More detailed guidance can be found in Tower Hamlets' primary ICTscheme of work

The legal picture – what you can and cannot do

The Information Commissioner's Office is clear that the Data Protection Act does not ban parents from taking videos of school productions. "Fear of breaching the provisions of the Act should not be wrongly used to stop people taking photographs or videos which provide many with much pleasure," it says. "Photos [and video] taken purely for personal use are exempt from the Act."

However, there may be practical reasons why a school would ask parents not to do so, such as for a child's protection if they have been relocated to escape an abuser and there is a risk of recognition. Or in a situation where a parent unexpectedly withdraws permission for filming just before a performance, but insists the child's right to take part is respected, as happened to one London music teacher.

It can also be difficult to ensure that parents understand what "personal use" might mean, particularly as many people view websites such as Facebook as a personal place.

Julie Field, ICT coordinator at Little Kingshill combined school, Great Missenden, in Buckinghamshire, believes you have to be direct. "We tell the parents that they can take video but they must keep it personal. If they don't, if they put it online, we will ban them from doing it."

Knowing that a well-produced DVD will be made by the school can also prevent a cluster of parents gathering at the front to film, and allow them to sit back and enjoy the performance. It can also boost the school coffers with copies sold at a tenner a time.

Such fund-raising can help pay for shows, not only for costumes and staging, but also for the license to put it on. These can come with stringent conditions, including not staging a school show within close proximity of a professional one. A separate license may also be required for creating a recording of the production.